1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems and methods for accessing budgetary information and, more particularly, to such systems and methods for accessing governmental budgetary information via a network and also for performing budgetary projections therefrom.
2. Description of Related Art
Governmental budget systems, such as that known in the art in Florida, are often housed on mainframes, with program files being difficult to access and manipulate, especially for a person not conversant with complex computer coding. To properly use and understand such applications typically requires extensive training and a background in the budget desired to be accessed. For elected officials, a staff is required to mine data as desired; for a person outside the government, it would be virtually impossible to obtain such data in a desired form.
In the exemplary Florida system, operational systems data for state personnel, accounting, budgeting, and planning are housed in separate mainframe computers that are not linked and are incompatible. Reengineering such a system would present a difficult, time-consuming, and expensive challenge.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a system and method for accessing budgetary data via a network.
It is a further object to provide such a system and method that is indexed under a plurality of categories.
It is another object to provide such a system and method that is accessible via the Internet.
It is an additional object to provide such a system and method that contains links to related electronic sites for correlating budget information with other data.
It is also an object to provide such a system and method that is tailored for governmental budgetary data.
It is yet a further object to provide such a system and method that can perform zero-based budget analysis.
It is yet another object to provide such a system and method that can perform formula-based budget analysis.
It is yet an additional object to provide such a system and method that can perform budgetary projections.
These and other objects are achieved by the present invention, a budget information system that comprises a budgetary information database that includes numerical data and textual identifiers imported from a remote site. The numerical data are extracted from the remote site into a spreadsheet or similar application, and the textual identifiers are extracted from the remote site into a word processing application. The system also comprises means for receiving a keyword selected by a user and means for matching the database with the keyword. The keyword xe2x80x9cselectionxe2x80x9d may comprise, for example, the user""s entering the keyword into a search engine; alternatively, the selection may comprise clicking an item on the screen with a pointing device, that item linked to related data in the database. Means for formatting and outputting related budget data and a textual identifier that were found from the database search commensurate with the keyword match permit the user to receive correlated budget data on a desired topic.
Another aspect of the present invention are methods for building, accessing, and using a budget information system. This method comprises the steps of accessing a database containing raw budget data and textual information on a plurality of budgetary subdivisions. Next a list of titles of at least some of the budgetary subdivisions is compiled, and a first computer screen containing the list of titles is created.
In use, a numerical record on a selected budget subdivision is retrieved into a spreadsheet application, and a textual record on the selected budget subdivision is retrieved into a word processing application. A second screen is then formatted that contains the numerical record and the textual record in tabular form, and a link is provided between a title of the subdivision on the first screen with the second screen.
Yet another aspect of the invention is a budget information and creation system that comprises a budgetary information database. This database comprises numerical data and textual identifiers imported from a remote site. The numerical data are extracted from the remote site into a spreadsheet application, and the textual identifiers are extracted from the remote site into a word processing application.
Means are provided for interfacing with a user and for permitting the user to create a budget for a subdivision of the remote site using at least some of the numerical data and textual identifiers. Once the budget is created, means are employed for transmitting the created budget to the remote site.
A further aspect of the present invention is a budget projection system that comprises the a budgetary information database as above and means for interfacing with a user. Means are also provided for permitting the user to import and view a prior budget for a subdivision of the remote site using at least some of the numerical data and textual identifiers. The user is permitted to enter a projection variable, and means are employed for calculating a projected budget based upon the projection variable and the prior budget.
A multiplicity of features is provided by the present system and methods, including, but not intended to be limited to:
the ability to review data imported from disparate planning, budget, accounting, and personnel sources across subdivisions/agencies in order to effectively manage resources;
the ability to access the data via a network, such as the Internet, from any location and any time;
the integration of sources of operational data;
a searchable data system;
the ability to track items of interest for review, including business processes that are deemed to be of high or low priority, the budget needed to support that process, the positions necessary, and the expense related to that process;
the ability to review business processes
the ability to xe2x80x9cdrill downxe2x80x9d (expand) expense category details;
the ability to review employee position data in context of the planning documents, such as support of a particular process, salary information, work location, etc.;
the ability to model budget projections based upon prior data and a predetermined projection variable; and
the ability to perform formula-based budgeting.
The features that characterize the invention, both as to organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following description used in conjunction with the accompanying drawing. It is to be expressly understood that the drawing is for the purpose of illustration and description and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. These and other objects attained, and advantages offered, by the present invention will become more fully apparent as the description that now follows is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing.